98 S70 - starts up then dies immediately [ look over help needed, Indianapolis]

[Keshavsmith]

Hard cold start with my 98 S70… I’m a woman and not mechanically inclined so I’ve tried taking my car to 3 different mechanics, all of which have not been able to diagnose. I’ve mention fuel pump and fuel pump relay to them and they’ve brushed me off. I’ve put a new battery in the car. Bought a new alternator to have a friend install only to discover it was not the alternator. I’m at my wits end.
I love the car and do not want to replace it but I can’t keep dropping money on mechanics that don’t know what’s going on. Also, nobody really wants to work on a Volvo. I’ll get to the issue now- when it’s below like 45 degrees (Fahrenheit), when I first try to start it for the day it will start up then die immediately. After that it may take me 10 to 15 minutes or cranking for it to start, during which time it will start and die several times before it finally stays on. I read
on a Volvo forum somewhere to
turn the key to the “on” position and
Leave it for 5 minutes then the car will
Start. This works sometimes, sometimes I have to leave it in the on position longer than 5 minutes… the colder it is the harder it is to get it to start. Sometimes it can take me 20 minutes of intermittent trying to finally get it to start. A few other things I have noticed is that right before it actually starts, there is a buzzing noise from the dash, sounds like it’s coming from behind the steering wheel on the left side. Also, once the car starts, it runs perfectly, except, occasionally at a red light it will feel like it’s going to stall out, but never actually does. Sorry for the long post I just want to make sure all the factors have been mentioned. Thank you in advance for any possible input or ideas you might have. This is my 3rd Volvo, the other two being a 91 740 and a 00 V70, and I have faith that my current car will run for a long time as long as I take good care of it so getting this situation handled is imperative. Last thing, car gas 220k on it and was garage kept and maintained extremely well
By its previous owner. If that information os relevant..

[scot850]

Is your car a turbo or no turbo?

If it is a turbo then the issue may be the intercooler is frozen at those temperatures. If it is a turbo, open the hood and try to start it ideally with someone standing looking at the large pipe from the middle at the back of the radiator (that is the intercooler) and see if it collapses when you try to start the car.

What happens with this generation of turbocharged engines is, as they get older oil gets into the intercooler (which is like a coolant radiator for air) and starts to clog the channels in there. When the temperature gets that cold, when you switch the engine off, the warm air in the intercooler condenses and then freezes in the channels.

There are a few thinks you can do.

1) Do you have a block heater? If so plug it in.
2) If not, then you may have to consider an oil pan heater which sticks onto the bottom of the oil pan and heats the oil/engine. At those temperatures it may help somewhat.
3) Try parking with the radiator downwind before switching off.
4) If it is staying cold for long periods, consider cutting a piece of cardboard and zip-tying it behind the grill on the hood. This reduces the amount of cold air passing the intercooler when running and helps reduce the build up of condensation in the engine and pipework.

If the car starts, you will have to let it idle for maybe 5-10 minutes to allow the engine to warm up as well as the engine bay which will help defrost the intercooler before driving.

If it is a non-turbo, it could be the airbox thermostat is stuck shut and the throttle body is freezing.

Again, a piece of cardboard behind the grille helps warm the engine bay up quicker.

DO NOT RUN with the cardboard behind the grille above +10C (50F) for any length of time!!

Neil.

[volvolugnut]

I suggest trying to find a mechanic that works on Volvos. Sounds like you may have tried this without success. I think you may be correct about the fuel system as the problem. Turning the key to ON position for a while, can allow a weak fuel pump to build enough fuel pressure for the engine to start. If someone would test the cranking fuel pressure, that may confirm the problem. A clogged fuel filter might also be a factor. Low level in the fuel tank can also cause the fuel pump to work harder. Have you noticed more starting problems when the fuel level is low?
A check of the battery voltage would also confirm your battery is fully charged. Long cranking can drop the battery voltage and cause poor starting even if the engine cranks well.

Perhaps a helpful MVS member in Indiana could come help you. HINT! HINT!

Volvolugnut

[abscate]

Ooooof, you guys are off

Fuel pump relay possible, but a bad ECT, like what I have in Kat right now, will do exactly this.

When cold, you aren’t getting that rich injection pulse yo get you started. Just a few seconds of running, like 10, and it’s hot enough to run great.

It’s a $50 part , we can guide you through install.

I’m a woman and not mechanically inclined

But you can read, write , and know what you don’t know. Thst makes you smarter than all the mechanics who can’t fix your car

[Keshavsmith]

It is a turbo yes. It’s a T-5, maybe I should have mentioned that. It doesn’t say Intercooler on the trunk like other cars I’ve seen so I didn’t think it had one of those? I’m going to try first to jump the relay with a jumper wire that I’m about to YouTube the construction of and check to see if the relay is bad first. I mentioned ECT to the second mechanic in a list I left him(which I’m sure he loved, ha)so I don’t know if that’s already been checked or not. So yeah, I’m hopefully going to successfully check whether or not it is the relay and go from there. If that’s not the issue I’ll then take the next step of the ECT thing. Sorry if my terminology is not correct. I’m a work in progress with this whole car diagnosing/repair thing. Thank you so much for your help and replies! I really appreciate it. This has been a frustrating and expensive endeavor so far. I’ll update after I test the relay.

[scot850]

All turbos P80 Volvos from 1994-2000 (850's and S/V/C70's) have intercoolers. They are sandwiched with the radiator and just in front of it.

If you look at the first picture in this thread, at the bottom right of the picture you see a thick black pipe about 3" in diameter coming out from under the plastic plate that sits above your radiator. That pipe comes from the intercooler to your engine. The other thick metal pipe that runs from the rear of your engine towards the radiator is the inlet pipe to the intercooler.

viewtopic.php?t=72698

The issue with the intercooler freezing only happens at these really low temperatures. If your car runs fine at above 0C then this may be your issue. If not then as the other guys mention, the ECT or fuel are likely issues. With the ECT we only ever recommend the Volvo OE part as we have found that aftermarket units regularly have a short lifespan or are bad out the box.

We are here to help no matter the experience of the requester of help. We do try to tailor the response based on your knowledge or experience in car repair. I hope we don't throw too much info too fast, and don't feel afraid to ask if we are not clear.

Good luck!

Neil.

[abscate]

You can check the ECT if you know how to use a volt ohmmeter. If you share your zip we have several Hoosiers on our forum. We also have Hosers in Alberta.

[WhatAmIDoing]

You can rent fuel pressure testers from some of the big name parts stores. Hooks right up to the Schrader valve on the fuel rail. Makes diagnosing fuel problems very easy.

I did have a bad fuel pump relay that would make it hard to start in the cold, and cause it to run poorly until it warmed up.

[abscate]

Look around for a maker space or DIY garage if you are near Indy, Bloomington, or Boilermaker country.

Mechanics don’t like to be told what to do, even when they are clueless. It’s kind of a gulf between the service of “ fix it and drain my pocketbook” and DIY.

A good tech would not have replaced fuel pump and relay without confirming loss of pressure on cold start up, checking fuel pressure us a 10 minute task.

When were the distributor cap, rotor, and spark plugs last changed ? If these are dirty you can get cold start problems. They are 3 year, 50000 mile service items and have to be good Bosch parts (from FCP if you want lifetime warranty ). About $100 all in for parts

Send us a picture, use the email function here to send it to me until your post count reaches 10, enabling direct posting of pictures.

[Keshavsmith]

I’m trying to post the video I took of the buzzing sound it makes right before it starts… can I not do that? I have to have 10 posts first??